The knees are jerking fast and frequently. Watch out you don't get yourself kicked.
So let's see. Mary Bentley is (1) trying to starve poor folks and ruin the grocery business or (2) an honorable rep who's trying to do her part to make Arkansas a healthier state. We're going with No. 2, with Gentle Reader's permission.
State Rep. Mary Bentley has filed a perfectly reasonable bill that would limit what folks can buy with food stamps. Specifics are light, but it boils down to this: Junk food would be a no-no.
Why not? Taxpayers don't mind buying corn flakes and milk for folks who need the help, and even a ham and some veggies for supper. But cokes and chips? Even the USDA says that most folks on assistance pay for some of their groceries with their own money. Few would be left sans Pringles.
But taxpayers, through their elected representatives, might want their help to be . . . healthier help.
Arkansas is the sixth most obese state in the union. More than a third of us are considered obese.
"People can go buy Red Bull with food stamps," Rep. Bentley told the papers. "And that's not encouraging [good] health."
So . . . there are questions. Which of the hundreds of thousands of items in grocery stores are to be banned? And who's to make those decisions? Will the feds agree by giving Arkansas a waiver? They never have before when this has come up. Will the incoming Trump administration be more receptive to the idea? Will grocery stores be able to change their computer software to accommodate the change? What about small mom-and-pop outfits and convenience stores? There are a lot of details to work out. And you know who lives among the details.
But Mary Bentley's bill doesn't necessarily sound like a bad idea, no matter how many knees jerk. She certainly doesn't sound like somebody who's out to hurt poor people. Just the opposite.
Let's give her bill a fair hearing in next month's Legislative session. And see if we can shake out that little sucker in the red socks.
Editorial on 12/14/2016